Language Learning in Higher Education. Journal of CercleS (European Confederation of Language Centres in Higher Education)

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1 Language Learning in Higher Education Journal of CercleS (European Confederation of Language Centres in Higher Education) Special issue: Language learning for and with refugees in higher education According to the United Nations Refugee Agency an unprecedented 65.3 million people around the world have been forced from home. Among them are nearly 22.5 million refugees, over half of whom are under the age of In a recent statement 2, the European University Association called on policymakers at both European and member state level and higher education institutions to reduce obstacles which may prevent them from gaining access to higher education. They listed a series of actions that universities and European governments should support, which included Providing language teaching as a key element of societal integration and a prerequisite for successfully completing a study programme. Language learning is indeed seen as one of the keys to the integration of refugees and migrants in societies, and also in accessing education at all levels. As stressed by Thalgoot 3 : language is central to many of the issues raised by migration, particularly integration and social cohesion. Not only can competence in the host language impact on employment opportunities, but, according to Atfield, Brahmnhatt and O Toole (2007), lack of fluency or confidence in the host language may deny access to informal networks, where language skills may be further developed. As regards higher education, most initiatives regarding refugees have entailed provision of language support, at times collaboratively planned with university language centres. The European Commission has offered its Erasmus+ Online Linguistic Support (OLS) to over 50,000 refugees, and other commercial and non-commercial providers of online language learning resources are making their resources freely available through refugee associations. However, the appropriacy and efficacy of this language provision and these online resources are yet to be assessed. Language courses also represent a site for linguistic and cultural encounters where mutual learning occurs as students and teachers come to understand the (often harsh) realities of present-day migrations. Many associations, activist groups and NGOs offer free language courses or support with volunteer teachers, who may have limited or no experience of language teaching. In response to this, the Council of Europe has recently published a short Introduction in Beacco, Jean-Claude, Krumm, Hans-Jürgen, Little, David, Thalgott, Philia (eds.) (2017). The Linguistic Integration of Adult Migrants. Some lessons from research. Berlin: De Gruyter (for the Council of Europe).

2 document providing advice for such volunteers 4 and some higher education institutions are providing training for volunteer teachers. Submissions are invited for this special issue of the journal, which aims to explore research, practice and policies as regards language provision for asylum seekers and refugees, and professional development offered by universities for both professional language teachers and volunteers working in these contact zones (Pratt 1991). In fact the informal interventions on the part of laypersons have a fundamental role to play in migrant language development (Krumm 2017). Writers may wish to investigate approaches attempting to foster creativity, as the latter may build self-esteem, which in turn may facilitate making friends and achieving a sense of belonging (Smith 2016), or the use of Council of Europe tools, such as Language Support for adult refugees: a Council of Europe toolkit 5 or the European Language Portfolio (ELP): Adult Migrants learning the language of the host country 6. Overall, the practices addressed may perhaps call for language teachers to take up different roles than they have in the past (Garcia 2017). Papers addressing the following, or any other related themes would be most welcome: The role (and voice) of language centres in supporting higher education institutions refugee actions Professional development for professional and volunteer language teachers working with refugees Critical analysis and/or impact of language policies and requirements Tandem learning and etandem Language and arts/theatre with refugees Online and offline resources and language courses for refugees: evaluation, analysis and/or design Literacies and language teaching Use of the ELP, Autobiography of Intercultural Encounters and/or Council of Europe Toolkit Inclusive teaching practices Translanguaging and/or trans-collaboration in translation Mobile and computer-assisted language learning for refugees Language teachers going into the field (refugee camps)

3 Timeline Submission of articles 31 May 2018 Review process July 2018 September 2018 Notification of acceptance September 2018 Revision of articles September - October 2018 Publication of the special issue May 2019 Submissions should be sent as attachments, in Word and PDF format, to: Fiona Dalziel (guest editor), Università degli Studi di Padova; fionaclare.dalziel@unipd.it Francesca Helm (guest editor), Università degli Studi di Padova; Francesca.helm@unipd.it Breffni O Rourke (editor-in-chief), Trinity College Dublin; breffni.orourke@tcd.ie Liliana Szczuka-Dorna (editor-in-chief), Poznan University of Technology; liliana.szczuka-dorna@put.poznan.pl Articles and Activity Reports should be written in one of the three working languages of CercleS (English, French and German). Articles should be between 5000 and 7000 words in length (including references but excluding tables, figures and appendices). Those that report on empirical or experimental research should carry clear and explicit pedagogical implications, while those concerned with a practical dimension of language learning/teaching should include discussion of research-based principles. Articles on other areas of interest should include critical engagement with current discussion in the relevant literature. Submissions that the editorsin-chief judge worthy of serious consideration will be peer-reviewed. Articles should be presented as follows: 1. Name of author(s) 2. Title of article 3. Abstract ( words) 4. Key words (between 5 and 7) 5. Name of author(s) followed by institutional affiliation(s) and address(es). If there are two or more authors, please indicate which of them should receive correspondence 6. Text of article 7. References 8. Appendices 9. Tables and/or figures in the order in which they appear in the article

4 Activity reports should be between 2000 and 3000 words and should focus on an innovative activity carried out in a language centre and likely to be of interest to colleagues in other language centres. Submissions will be reviewed by the editors-in-chief and the assistant editors. Activity reports should presented as follows: 1. Name of author(s) 2. Title of activity report 3. Abstract ( words) 4. Key words (between 5 and 7) 5. Name of author(s) followed by institutional affiliation(s) and address(es). If there are two or more authors, please indicate which of them should receive correspondence 6. Text of activity report organized as follows: a) Description of context b) Account of activity c) Summary of results/experience d) Future prospects 7. References (if any) 8. Appendices (if any) 9. Tables and/or figures (if any) Whether you are submitting a research article or an activity report, please observe the following conventions: Margins: 2.5 cm Font: Times New Roman 12pt Paragraph spacing: 1.5 lines Numbering of sections and sub-sections: please follow the publisher s style sheet (appended to these guidelines) Indent the first line of each paragraph by pressing the tab key once No space after paragraphs As indicated above, tables and figures should be inserted in sequence at the end of your text file. Indicate roughly where each table/figure should occur by inserting in your text: [Please insert Table/Figure X here] Footnotes should be used sparingly and inserted using the INSERT FOOTNOTE function in Word Figures, screenshots, etc. should be submitted as high-resolution images References, both in the running text and in the list at the end of the article, should be presented strictly according to the publisher s style sheet (appended to these guidelines) Submissions that fail to observe these conventions will not be considered for publication.

5 References Beacco, J.-C.; Krumm, H.-J.; Little, D.; Thagott, P. (Eds.): The Linguistic integration of adult migrants/l intégration linguistique des migrants adultes. Some lessons from research/ Les enseignments de la recherché. Berlin: De Gruyter Mouton. European University Association (23 October, 2015) European universities response to the refugee crisis. Available at: Garcia, O. (2017) Problematizing the linguistic integration of migrants: the role of translanguaging and language teachers. In: Beacco, J.-C.; Krumm, H.-J.; Little, D.; Thagott, P. (Eds.): The Linguistic integration of adult migrants/l intégration linguistique des migrants adultes. Some lessons from research/ Les enseignments de la recherché. Berlin: De Gruyter Mouton Krumm, Hans-Jürgen (2017). Refugees Need Language how can Volunteers give Support? European Journal of language Policy, Vol. 9/1, pp Pratt, M.L. (1991) Arts of the Contact Zone. Modern Language Association. Pp Smith, Anne (2016). Creative English: balancing creative and functional language needs for adult refugees, asylum seekers and migrants. Scenario Vol. X/1, available at: